Younger Diamantaires Grapple With Industry’s Future

By Rob Bates | June 16, 2025

The natural diamond business should see bright days ahead, but it has to change with the times, panelists said during a session on “The Future of the Diamond Industry,” held June 11 during the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) presidents’ meeting in New York City.

“Change is here,” said Moshe Salem, WFDB vice president and president of the Diamond Club West Coast. “If you’re ready to change and pivot, grab a device and learn how to use it…. The natural business will come back, but it won’t be the same. We will continue to tell the story of rarity and of love, but we will need to tell it in a different way.”

David Troostwyk, president of the London Diamond Bourse, added that he’s “bullish on diamonds” because he believes authenticity will become more important in the age of AI.

“I think we will get to a point where people will use artificial intelligence for emails and articles in newspapers,” he said. “Everything is going to be artificial. I recently received an email from a friend of mine, and it said things like ‘furthermore.’ He’s never talked like that in his life. Why would he write that in an email? Probably because he used AI. It felt less authentic. I didn’t even answer it.

“In the future, everything is going look the same, everyone is going to speak the same, they will read the same information, and the houses will look the same. And what are people going to want? Handmade natural pieces. And natural diamonds, in my opinion, will make a comeback.”

Molefi Letsiki, chairman of Diamond Dealers Club of South Africa, said the industry needs to speak more about diamonds to younger consumers.

“The current generation does not see the value of buying diamonds, and that was why it was easy for them to go to lab-grown diamonds,” he said. “We need to speak to the new generation, Generation Alpha. The only way we can create that appetite [for diamonds] is to start speaking to them now. “

He said that the trade needs to reach younger people where they live, on social media and games.

Craig Miller, president of the Diamond Dealers Club of Australia, argued that the industry has to focus its messaging more on consumers in general.

“We tend to repeat the same thing over and over, talking to each other,” he said. “But we need to talk to the consumer. Because they are the ones that are making the final decision and spending their money.”

The panelists agreed that the trade needs to attract more young talent and mentioned the formation of the Young Diamantaires group as a key way to do that.

“The idea for Young Diamantaires was that people under the age of 45 wanted to get people together and ask each other questions, give their opinions, and challenge the status quo,” explained Troostwyk. “That creates relationships, and that’s a fundamental part of our industry. It has brought us all together to be stronger and able to speak our minds.

“If we look back in time, we all use to compete against each other. And we do still compete, to some extent. But today, everything is out in the open, and seeing each other as competitors is harming us more than it’s helping us. And the reason I founded [website] Civigem is to able to use technology to create a different mindset to see each other as colleagues rather than competitors.”

Letsiki said that “usually in [industry] groups, it will just be diamond dealers. Young Diamantaires brought everyone in the industry—whether they are in retail or upstream, on the mining side—together to offer their perspective. And it brings people together not just to do business, but to build relationships, and build a community.

“It’s becomes not even about business anymore; it’s beyond that. It’s about the difference you want to make together. And that speaks to the young generation today. They want to know: What difference am I making?”

Troostwyk noted his bourse has created initiatives to attract more young people, including a mentoring program.

“Grooming the next generation is a hallmark of true leadership,” said Salem. “You need to invite people, and appoint them in different roles, and let them make little mistakes, and perhaps you correct them—not that you always get it right—and you let them feel comfortable.”

When asked what the diamond industry means to them, the panelists had different answers.

“I feel passion about what I do, through the good times and the bad times,” Miller said. “Diamonds are a miracle, and I like that they make people happy.”

Letsiki said he enjoys that selling diamonds “enables me to be part of special moments in people’s lives.”

He added that he considers himself “a testament to the idea that diamonds do good. All my education was paid by money from somebody getting paid to polish diamonds. All my life experiences has been paid by diamonds…. I see the difference they’ve made in people’s lives.”

Troostwyk mentioned the diversity of interests and personalities he deals with.

“What I love…is it’s one product that touches so many different industries,” he said. “You have mining, you have manufacturing, you have retail.

“I am a quite sociable person. I like to be in an environment where I can meet lots of people. To be able to conduct my business like that all day, I feel very lucky.”

Salem singled out the importance of “integrity” in the trade.

“If you have spine and principle in this industry, you can always walk tall,” he said.

The panel was moderated by the author of this article.

Top, from left: Moshe Salem, David Troostwyk, Molefi Letsiki, and Craig Miller (photo courtesy of WFDB)